Book 2 Post 2
On Tyranny is the first adult graphic novel that I have read. It was written by Timothy Snyder and illustrated by Nora Krug. The book doesn’t have a traditional format of a rising action, climax, falling action. Snyder instead organizes the chapters by advice for people who don’t want to be controlled by an authoritarian government. These points range from “Do not obey in advance” (Chapter 1), “Investigate” (Chapter 11), and “Be calm when the unthinkable arises” (Chapter 18). In each chapter, Snyder describes the issues with disagreeing with his advice, examples of historical events when his advice was not followed, and actions someone can take to live his advice in their daily lives. The overarching theme throughout is about the media and information. Basically, it is bad to have only one source of information, and for a democratic government to exist, we need unbiased journalism. Also, Snyder talks about the significance the public holds during the time of a growing regime.
If I had read this book a month ago, it would have had a less profound impact on me than it does now. I would have compared the content to the Holocaust or Trump’s presidency, none of which are current events. It would have been harder for me to believe in Snyder’s advice because I wasn’t actively seeing it in my life. Now that I have a reference from the past to the present, Snyder’s words are more trustworthy because he predicted a war. On Tyranny was written before Putin declared war on Ukraine, but his tactics are identical to the one Snyder warns us to look out for. The Kremlin dictating news that can be shown to Russians takes away their personal right of investigation. This leads to one group believing in a cause before evidence can be shown. They will also place their faith in a person who is preaching “creative myths”. Both of these are currently happening in Russia. Reading this graphic novel felt like I was given a prophecy and lived to see it come to light.
I love and hate the artistic style of On Tyranny. The art looks like it was drawn by a seventh grader who was doodling in class. It was very hard for me to not laugh at it. However, I think the childlike art was intentional. The harshness of the writing/topic is balanced by the innocence of the art. I think the book would have been harder to read without the strange drawings because I would have been trapped in the sorrow of the stories. Therefore, I feel neutral towards the graphic part of this novel—it could be better, but it could be worse. Snyder’s writing was too academic and professional for my liking, but his target audience probably wasn’t an eighteen-year-old girl. I am glad that I chose this book, but I think the timing of me reading it was better than the novel itself.
Hi Ellie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing! I also read On Tyranny and I had very similar takeaways as you. This book was perfect for the time we are in right now as Putin is the very definition of the person that this book warns against. This book provides very useful tips and strategies on how to react when a dictator is abusing their power. I also agree with you that the images were a little childish, however, they did make the book easier to follow.
Elan
Hello Ellie,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like On Tyranny offers some really good conversation about protecting democracy and preserving our freedoms against misinformation and authoritarianism. I really liked that you were able to apply what you read about to the current situation in Ukraine and that it made the book more meaningful to you. It's interesting that it was a graphic novel and I think the childlike pictures would definitely help the reader digest a serious topic like that.
Ethan
Hi Ellie,
ReplyDeleteThis book seems very interesting. It reminds me a lot of the journalism class that I took my freshman year. I think that people nowadays are so foolish with their attitudes towards the media. If we did not have media outlets, reliable media outlets, then where in the hell would we be! Surely, we would be under dictatorship. The low amount of respect for and perceived need for journalism is tragic and will end in tragedy.
Mason
Hi Ellie!
ReplyDeleteThis novel reminds me of Maus by Art Spiegelman, which is a graphic novel that depicts Art's father's experience as a Jew in Nazi Germany. In this book, the art style really complimented the dark themes Art writes about, and I think that is similar to the book you read. I read Maus for a high school class a few years ago, and honestly it's one of the few books that stuck with me. I encourage you to check it out if you want to see a good use of the graphic novel style of writing.
Bryan
Hey Ellie,
ReplyDeleteGreat post! It was really insightful and thought-out. While I had no idea what your book was, I really got a feel through this short post. It's really crazy to see how applicable it is given the current political climate. I'm surprised and jealous and how applicable your book is, but I still like my pick as well. A job well done on the post!
Best,
Brooke
Hi Ellie,
ReplyDeleteThis book is definitely interesting based on the current world events. I'm sorry the drawings where childish, but I'm glad it made the book somewhat entertaining. I used to be really interested in dictatorships. I wonder if the book is still worth reading even though it wasn't as well written.
Best,
Lesley
Hi Ellie,
ReplyDeleteThis book is not what I expected it to be! I had picked Losing Eden, but On Tyranny seems somewhat interesting. First of all I didn't expect for there to be pictures in the book, especially ones that appeared to be drawn by a 7th grader! This book is relevant to the war in Ukraine, and I appreciate the fact that you mentioned the similarities.
-Angel Perez